Ford Escort Cosworth – Custom Valet

I was asked to give this retro Ford Escort Cosworth a custom valet before it was put away in storage until next year.

The exterior of the car was covered in dust and a bit of dirt and mud but not much else.

The paint work was dull and just needed a good polish with a quality wax.

The interior was grubby but you could tell the car had been well looked after and wasn't too bad.

The body of the Cosworth was firstly rinsed to loosen and remove the mud and grit. To do this I applied a TFR cleaner which is known as a traffic film remover which helps with the cleaning process by loosening all the dirt ready to then be rinsed off.

The next stage was washing the body work using a good quality wash and wax shampoo which I applied with a lambs wool mitt. This was followed by another rinse off.

The wheels were not that dirty, but they were covered in the brake dust and tar which had started to bake on and it was really hard to remove, but I did managed to remove most of it with an alloy wheel cleaner and a wheel brush.

Now that the exterior had been fully cleaned it was time to chamois off the Cosworth ready to be dressed and polished.

Next stage was to clay bar the body work to remove all the nasty contaminants including the tar spots. You must always use a clay bar lubricant with your clay bar which you rub over each panel at a time applying the lubricant as you go.

Once I had a nice smooth finish on the paint work it was time to machine polish the car to remove the swirl marks and the light scratches bringing the paint work back to life.

There was no tar on the outside to remove because the car had been regularly cleaned and had not been driven that much.

Next I applied a good quality hard wax by hand and polished off with a microfiber cloth.

Then I treated the tyres with a tyre and trim plastic dressing with gives the tyres an ultra shine which really sets the outside of the car off.

I cleaned the windows inside and out with a window cleaner buffing them with a microfiber cloth.

The interior of the vehicle including boot area was then thoroughly vaccumed.

I cleaned the door and boot shuts with a degreaser/polish to remove all grease & dirt.

Next I cleaned and wiped down the dash and all plastic trims and seats removing the dust and dirt.

This car did not need much doing to it as it was well looked after, but a good quality valet has brought it back to life and kept it looking its best - its very important to keep your car clean to help protect it - essential for a well loved car such as this one.